Call it a recession, already

By Paul R. La Monica, CNNMoney
2008-11-7 12:58:09

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Nearly 1.2 million jobs have been lost this year. The unemployment rate is at its highest level since 1994. Retail sales were dismal last month and for automakers, October was the worst month in more than a quarter-century.

But guess what? The United States is still not officially in a recession.

That's because a recession is only defined by a group of academics called the National Bureau of Economic Research.

It's not the media's call. It's not the President's or Congress' call. Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta president Dennis Lockhart said in a speech Friday that the data "indicate" we are in recession, but heck, even Fed chair Ben Bernanke doesn't get to make the call.

According to the NBER's Web site, a recession "is a significant decline in economic activity spread across the economy, lasting more than a few months, normally visible in real GDP, real income, employment, industrial production, and wholesale-retail sales."

	Investment Basic Investment Overview Investment Approache Fundamentals Data Investment Stories www.fxj108.com	Call it a recession, already By Paul R. La Monica, CNNMoney 2008-11-7 12:58:09 NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Nearly 1.2 million jobs have been lost this year. The unemployment rate is at its highest level since 1994. Retail sales were dismal last month and for automakers, October was the worst month in more than a quarter-century. But guess what? The United States is still not officially in a recession. That's because a recession is only defined by a group of academics called the National Bureau of Economic Research. It's not the media's call. It's not the President's or Congress' call. Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta president Dennis Lockhart said in a speech Friday that the data "indicate" we are in recession, but heck, even Fed chair Ben Bernanke doesn't get to make the call. According to the NBER's Web site, a recession "is a significant decline in economic activity spread across the economy, lasting more than a few months, normally visible in real GDP, real income, employment, industrial production, and wholesale-retail sales."